Qualcomm has announced Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1, a three-chip solution for wireless AR glasses.
AR2 is not designed to power standalone devices. It handles computer vision tasks like position tracking and hand tracking, but an external device with a more powerful Qualcomm chip, like a smartphone or computer puck, runs the actual AR apps and wirelessly streams the output to the goggles.
The link is handled by Qualcomm’s latest FastConnect 7800 wireless chip, supporting the new Wi-Fi 7 standard. Qualcomm claims that the stream latency is less than 2 milliseconds. Current AR glasses such as Really light connect to host phone via USB-C cable.
Snapdragon AR2 is built on a 4nm process node. Qualcomm claims it consumes only half the power of the Snapdragon XR2 used in standalone headsets, and the multi-chip solution distributes the heat generated throughout the device rather than concentrating it in one location.
This low power consumption and heat dissipation means AR2 can be paired with smaller batteries and much lighter cooling systems than traditional chipsets, enabling devices with a form factor that approaches regular glasses.
Quaclomm says multiple companies are working on products that use AR2, including LG, Lenovo, Xiaomi, TCL, Sharp, OPPO, Pico and Nreal.